The present disclosure relates generally to firearm accessories, and more particularly, pertains to a heatshield assembly provided for a barrel of a firearm or weapon.
It is well known to those skilled in the art that rapid fire weapons, such as semi-automatic or automatic rifles and shotguns, are characterized by the heating of their metal barrels to relatively high temperatures, often in excess of 600° F. At such intense temperatures, the barrels cannot be comfortably or safely handled by the shooter of the weapon. Various expedients, typically in the form of heatshield assemblies, have been resorted to in the past in an attempt to protect the hands of the person firing the weapon from harmful contact with the excessively hot barrel.
Certain known heatshield assemblies typically include a curved, perforated metallic body having front and rear tabs, clamps, flanges or other retaining structures which are integrally formed on the body. These integral retaining structures are bent, clamped and secured with additional fasteners to the metal barrel to mount the heatshield assembly along substantially the entire length of the barrel. Such known heatshield assemblies have been designed to allow dissipation of heat to protect the shooter's hands during the rapid discharging of the firearm. Unfortunately, installation and use of these currently available heatshield assemblies results in sliding metal-to-metal contact between the heatshield body and the barrel causing possible damage to the barrel which is undesirable.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide a heatshield assembly in which a heatshield body is secured to the barrel of a firearm in a suspended, isolated relationship so as to prevent any direct metal-to-metal contact between the heatshield body and the barrel, and eliminate any scratching or damage to the barrel. There is an additional need to provide a firearm heatshield assembly having a mounting arrangement which can prevent movement of the heatshield body on the barrel during use, withstand temperatures in excess of 600° F., and enable optional attachment of further accessories to the heatshield body.